Moist and creamy, but not wet and gooey. Not doughy. Not as dry as store bought though. We're well pleased with the consistency and texture. I think the press is working well. Maybe for dryer cheese we could tighten down more and more often.

The flavor is mild and clean. No sour milk taste at all. We'd like it to be a little richer though. Maybe it will get there with age. It's definitely Colby all the same.

There are a few small mold spots under the wax. I dunno. We waxed the heck out of it.

Good to hear the cheese turned out. I made a few batches of Mozzarella today. they turned out good real easy to make.
Dan I was looking at making a press like that, but decided for a first time thing the other would be easier. I will be making one that looks like that just because I like the looks. Probably this summer when I can get the tools out for longer than a hour without fear of getting rained on. YES I will watch out for the finger...

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by CthulhuDreaming

As a parent, hearing nuggets of parenting wisdom from someone who's never had kids is a bit like hearing sex advice from a virgin.

Fairy tales don't tell children that dragons exist; children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children that dragons can be killed.
― G.K. Chestertonhttp://whatalesyou.webs.com/

Steve, you'll probably get it made before I do and I know your time is more pressed (cheese joke.. see? )

I've been screwing around with a basic wooden brewstand that I built, tore apart, redesigned and then added a bunch of silicone tubing, QDs and a pump. Removed the pump resituated and built a better splash guard for it. Dwelved into a plate chiller and then read about Jamail Z's IC re-circulation set-up. Built it with QDs and tested the cooling effect, tested again. For what it's worth the the re-circulation works amazingly fast.

I've also been petering about with electric. If I ever finish my simple, and I do mean simple compared to the awesome rigs on here; it will be amazing if I ever brew again. Might even buy and extract. Haha. No.

Very happy you brought up making cheese. Seen it before on the threads around here but when you mentioned it. You motivated me man! I'm like a new brewer except now it's cheese!

My redneck cold smoker I built it today I built it with the 2 plastic buckets some flexible ducting and a computer fan to draw the smoke from the smoker through the ducting and the plastic containers. Don't forget the duct tape I used to seal everything off. I figure the smoke will cool down enough while going through the ducting it will be able to cool off even more in the first plastic box then be pushed into the second plastic container then out the smoke stack. I will use it to smoke my next batch of cheddar and to smoke my own bacon on Friday. I have the pork belly coming into Safeway here in the next day or two. I am also told that smoked deviled eggs are the bomb...
Here is a pic of my first cheddar all done up in cheese wax.
And here is a pic of the lasagna I cooked with my fresh mozzarella it was good...

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by CthulhuDreaming

As a parent, hearing nuggets of parenting wisdom from someone who's never had kids is a bit like hearing sex advice from a virgin.

Fairy tales don't tell children that dragons exist; children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children that dragons can be killed.
― G.K. Chestertonhttp://whatalesyou.webs.com/

I'm going to post a picture of the cheese press I'm building. You are going to have to use your imagination on the final product.

The wood is from an old bed that is not longer needed. This pic is just the basic planning stage. I think it is upside down in the photo. At the top is the base, the wood below it will be mounted vertically to the base. It is a fulcrum style press. Haven't spent any money on it yet, just used stuff around the house. I will have to buy a bottle of Elmer wood glue and some hardware. Should be able to get the thing finished up for under $10.

Not sure I'll use the knobs on the top. They are available and can use them.. The plunger in the middle I think I'll round off the edges at the top of it. Probably also round the other end so the corners don't interfere with the flow at the base. I know what I mean but not sure I explain what I mean.. Again.. Use your imagination.

I meant the fulcrum lever I'll round at the bottom so there is no interference. The plunger will also be rounded at the top for aesthetic reasons only. Hope that makes sense to you.

The Farmhouse Cheddar should be ready in about a month.
Why let a little bit of curdled milk intimidate you. I plan on making salami here soon also. What is more fun fun than Beer Cheers and Salami.

Let us know how the salami went. I got my partner a mincer and she is looking at trying it out but would be really interested on how yours went.
If you don't mind me asking how you make it too.....like what you used and how much